Part of the Ingram-Green family tree (Great uncle)
Ernest Thomas Ingram was the brother of Mildred Ingram. He spent three years in the British Army in South Africa, before returning to a life on the farm.
Family background and early life
Ernest Thomas Ingram was born at Dunsprings Farm in Barkingside, Essex on 21 March 1882. He was the third of eight children born to James Ingram (1858–1924) and his wife, Annie née Bosworth. He was baptised on 7 May 1882 at Holy Trinity Church, Barkingside.
At the 1891 census, 9-year old Ernest was recorded as living with his parents and siblings at Hedgeman’s Farm.
Military service
Following the declaration of war between the United Kingdom and the Boer republics of South Africa in October 1899, Ernest (aged 18) enlisted with the 81st (Sharpshooters) Company, 21st Battalion, Imperial Yeomanry as a Shoeing Smith (No. 22242).
Speaking in 1978, his sister Mildred said of Ernest:
He was a very good horseman and tamed a difficult horse that no-one else had been able to ride – he blindfolded it, apparently. He was given this mount as a reward, but one day they were caught in a veldt fire and the horse panicked, bolting and injuring himself and Ernest. The rider recovered, but the horse had to be shot.
He took part in the operations in Cape Colony, Orange Free State and Transvaal. He was discharged at the end of the war in May 1902.
His service earned him the Queen’s South Africa Medal with five clasps: Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Transvaal, South Africa 1901 and South Africa 1902.
There is no known record of Ernest serving with the Armed Forces in the First World War.
Shortly after his return to England, in February 1903 he was working in the fields with his 21-year brother James, who was accidentally shot and killed when boarding a farm wagon.
Marriage and children
On 26 December 1906, 24-year old Ernest married Ethel May Legg (aged 21) at St Clement’s Church, Ilford. She was the eldest daughter of Frederick Legg, a solicitors’ clerk, who later worked for the Inland Revenue as a tax collector.
The couple had four children:
Ernest Frederick, born September 1907
Marjorie, born February 1910
Stanley Edward, born September 1911
John Dudley, born May 1920
At the 1911 census, the family were living at 14 Bute Road, Ilford, where Ernest was working in the family farm at Hedgeman’s. Ten years later, the couple and their four children were still at Bute Road, and Ernest was still employed by his father at Hedgeman’s.
In the Kelly’s directory for 1925, Ernest was recorded as a “shopkeeper” at High Street, Barkingside.
Death
Ernest Thomas Ingram died at 7 High Street, Barkingside on 18 November 1927, aged 45.
His widow, Ethel never re-married and died in Romford in 1940, aged 54.
Note
As of June 2026, his Queen’s South Africa Medal was for sale on the London Medals website at £185.
Sources
Ancestry.co.uk:
1891 England Census
1911 England Census
1921 England Census
England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1966, 1973-1995
Essex, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1918
Essex, England, Church of England Deaths and Burials, 1813-1994
Essex, England, Church of England Marriages, 1754-1935
UK, City and County Directories, 1766 – 1946
UK, Military Campaign Medal and Award Rolls, 1793-1949
Casus-Belli.co.uk
Medal record: Ernest Thomas Ingram.
Chelmsford Chronicle:
27 February 1903. Shot Through the Heart at Barkingside
Eastern Counties’ Times:
28 December 1906. Local Weddings
25 November 1927. Deaths
Essex Weekly News:
27 February 1903. Ilford Volunteer Shot Dead
The London Medal Company: